LIVING IN THE KINGDOM

This chapter is taken from another lesson I taught at least three years ago. However, it is by the unction of the Holy Ghost that we are called to revisit it. I. THEY SOUGHT ANOTHER COUNTRY It is simply amazing as to the distance the Body of Christ is from experiencing the riches of God’s glory. We are not walking in our inheritance as Sons of God. Because of this, we are not able to be that presentation of Christ that is ordained by the Father. There is a Kingdom that we have been born into, yet know nothing about. We do not even fellowship with the other citizens of that Kingdom who may be a part of the same local assembly. The Body of Christ here on earth is fragmented and divided on issues and doctrines. There can be no unity of the faith because we are not all in agreement with the Father. This must change. Let us go back in the Word and see the real intent of the Father for the Body of Christ while we are here on earth.

Hebrews 11:13-14

13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

14 For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.

They sought another country. This is a literal seeking of a literal place. However, the country they sought after was spiritual and they were natural men. These were all men of the flesh seeking after a spiritual kingdom. It was impossible for them to inherit such a kingdom in their natural state.

1 Corinthians 15:50

50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

The best they could do was to visualize that Kingdom through the preaching of the Word of God or obtain glimpses of it in dreams and visions given by God. They never obtained the promises, but they did embrace them and did see them afar off. In other words, they believed God. They believed in the hope of the Gospel. The Kingdom of God was real to them. They died holding fast to faith in what God had promised. They believed beyond the grave. Now let us go back to Hebrews the 11th chapter: 15 And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.

It is important to note here that the fleshy mind was in agreement with God. Their fleshy minds believed in the promises of God. “If they had been mindful,” means they never considered anything contrary to the promises of God. They trusted that God was able to deliver what He promised. Now had their mind been influenced by unbelief, they would no doubt have left off seeking the promise that motivated them to become pilgrims and sojourners here on the earth. They lived as strangers in a foreign land. Why? Their belief and trust made the promise real to them. They actually believed that a heavenly city existed somewhere for them. This belief is what motivated them to take the posture necessary to perform all the acts of faith listed in Hebrews 11.

Hebrews 11:16

16 But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.

Hebrews 11:39-40

39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:

40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

Now the Lord had prepared for them a city that they never reached in their lifetime. However, Paul goes on to say that they could not be made perfect without us. In saying so, he reiterates that God had provided us with a greater salvation experience in our lifetime than what He provided for them. That greater experience is the fact that we received the promise they believed in. We actually arrived at the city that was prepared for them and us. It is a place of fellowship for both the houses of Moses and Christ. I do not know if you realize at this point the awesomeness of this Word.

Until the Lord spoke to me recently, I had no idea of the impact of this scripture on the lives of the Sons of God. We have actually come to that city. Nevertheless, in order to understand this totally, a new mindset must be formed in the Sons of God. Consider the following:

Hebrews 12:14-17

14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:

15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.

17 For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.

The first part of these passages seems to deal with a completely different subject matter than the latter verses of this chapter, but I want us to really hear the mind of the Father here. First of all, verses 14-17 are a warning. Paul reminds us to walk in the peace of God, as we interact with the people of this world. He challenges us also to walk in holiness or we will cause others to be defiled and fall short of the grace of God. Paul goes on to site us the example of Esau, rendering that he sold his birthright for a bowl of soup. He warns that afterwards Esau sought repentance, but could not find it. In other words, he never repented for the sin of disrespecting the birthright, but was simply sorry for having lost it. Paul warns that we can acquire the same heart, if we do not remain diligent and steadfast in the faith.

Saints are denying themselves of their birthright everyday. But the remorse in doing so is due to the loss of benefits that come with the birthright, not the dishonoring of the Father or the disrespect for the inheritance. However, do not miss all that is implied here. Paul is describing the fact that we have a birthright that is set before us right now. It is the Kingdom of God. It is the heavenly city located in a heavenly country, prepared for the redeemed of the Lord. The warning here is that we, too, can trade our inheritance for the pleasures and sins of this world. Consider the root of bitterness he mentions here. This root of bitterness springs up or grows out of the impurity of the heart. Paul is very clear here. The heart must be pure in order to bring closure to sin in our lives. Otherwise, that which we allow to remain in us will cheat us out of entering into the peace of God. That peace can only be found in the Kingdom of God.

The bottom line is that sin will rob us of the birthright promises due the sons of God. Likewise, it also becomes impossible to see the Kingdom when we walk in the flesh. Above, Paul sets the stage for his description of our resident city by comparing it to Israel’s encounter with God.

Hebrews 12:18-21

18 For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,

19 And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:

20 (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart:

21 And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)

II. THE RESIDENT CITY

Hebrews 12:22-23

22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,

23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, We have come to this place.

We have arrived at heavenly Jerusalem, into a company of angels, the general assembly of the Church, unto the Father Himself, and the spirits of those who did not receive the promise in their lifetime but are now made perfect. Remember, they could not be made so without us. Now we all make up the general assembly of the first-born.

Hebrews 12:24-27

24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

25 See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:

26 Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.

27 And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.

If God is speaking to His people, then He expects us to hear. The promise that God will lead and guide His people is true for all who are partakers of the Holy Ghost. If such is the case, why is it common for most of the Body of Christ to confess that they are not sure as to when the Lord is speaking to them? This seems to be a major issue in the Body. The people of God are not sure as to when God is speaking, neither are they sure as to what to do. Where is the leading? Where is the guidance He promised?

Revelation 3:20

20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

SUP Spiritual communion between Christ and the faithful believer. (From Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words). The Lord promised to sup with those in whom He lives. This supping is spiritual communion. It is fellowship with Christ in the Spirit. I will commune with Him and He will commune with me. This is the promise. What went wrong? Why is there hardly any supping with the Master? If there were, then the Body would know the mind of the Father and the Son. We must be honest here. The problem is that there is virtually no fellowship with the Lord. We seek to commune with Him through our rituals of fasting and shutting in, but the Lord is Holy and Light. In Him is no darkness at all.

III. BELIEF AND TRUST

There are several things working here:

1. THE OLD PATRIARCHS BELIEVED GOD. They were fully persuaded that the Lord would deliver that which He promised. They looked for that foreign country. They looked for that heavenly city. They did not stagger at these promises. They were not mindful of that place they left both naturally and spiritually. They were persuaded in their mind that God had something better for them. They had no thought wars. They did not allow themselves to think anything contrary to the promises of the Lord. They believed Him.

1. BY FAITH THEY SERVED HIM. It was the anchor of their belief and trust in God that enabled them to do the great exploits they performed in the days of old. The whole 11th chapter of Hebrews declares that everything was done by their faith in God.

1. TO BELIEVE GOD IS TO BE APPROVED OF GOD. The old patriarchs faith in God made Him not ashamed to be their God and to manifest His works through them. The same is true now. We too, must be approved of God by belief and trust. We must believe Him.
2. WE DO NOT AGREE WITH GOD. This is where the breakdown is. They agreed to the point of suffering.

We disagree with anything that will take us out of our comfort zones. Forget living a lifestyle of self-denial and sacrifice. We have never been able to move to where the patriarchs were in faith because we have not really agreed with God. His method and way of raising us in the gospel is not to our liking. Therefore, we go about to establish our own method of servitude and dare to insist that God accepts it and will work with us in it. They were not mindful of this world, but we are. We are attached to this world at the hip. There are some things that we have been reluctant to give up and become completely vulnerable in our minds to God.

IV. RENEWING THE MIND

1. THE MIND MUST CEASE TO BE OUR ENEMY. If it is to be renewed, it must suffer truth. It must be allowed to suffer experiential knowledge. The mind must be allowed to experience the Word of God. It must be allowed to go further than the academics of the gospel. It must experience the performance of the Word.

1. THE MIND CAN BE TRAINED TO LOVE GOD. Just as we trained our mind to love coming to church, a place that it was not fond of before salvation, so can we train it to love righteousness.

1. THE MIND MUST BE EXPOSED TO THE TRUTH THROUGH EXPERIENCE. It must live the truth before it can even determine if it likes it or not. To do this means to do the righteous thing inside of every situation, circumstance or relationship. Do not allow the mind to seek another route. Submit to the will of God in every situation in your heart. Work the situation in the Spirit. Allow the mind exposure to this supernatural peace by submitting to God in all things.

1. THE MIND WILL SURRENDER TO THE WILL OF GOD. It will come to love God and the things pertaining to God.

Romans 7:25

25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

V. RENEW THE MIND WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF TRUTH

There is a whole spiritual kingdom that we have denied ourselves access to. Our minds have opposed us. But the Lord is faithful to say, “Allow your mind to suffer my truth. It will fall in love with me. Take no short cuts in enduring temptation. You will come to love righteousness and prefer it.” This is the only way the Lord will manifest Himself to us in our walk or our ministry. We must walk in the Spirit. The mind must be convinced that this walk of faith is real. It must be allowed to experience truth at every turn.

FELLOWSHIP: participation, or (social) intercourse, (to) communicate, communion, distribution For me fellowship has taken on a deeper meaning since I began to walk in the Spirit of God. Each and every facet of the definition above is relative to our life in the Spirit.

• We can have social interaction or (intercourse) as Strong’s puts it.
• We can indeed communicate with the Father and the Son.
• We can participate, distribute and contribute to the purpose of the eternal God. It was His intent from the beginning that we do so.

I really want to go into what it really means to fellowship in the Spirit, but I am not sure as to how to write what it is that I have heard from the Father. The Lord is raising a body of people who will not oppose His purpose in the earth. When your mind comes into agreement with Him, then and only then will you see and serve the Master within the Kingdom we were born into. You should be determined to hear and see more clearly into the spirit world. You should make a covenant with your own mind to suffer truth. We are not far from the Kingdom . . . just one decision away.